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  • Charging System Problem

    I have just replaced the generator and voltage regulator on my Hawk.
    When I`m driving without the accessories on ie. lights the amp gauge stays ib the middle. It doesn`t show it charging at all., with lights on it shows discharge about 2 bars off the center mark. Could
    the gauge be defective? The battery is also new and I did polarize the regulator. Any advice on what could be the cause or is this normal. I replaced everything because after driving home from work I parked my car and the next day the battery was drained.[xx(]

    Dan



    1962 GT Hawk

  • #2
    Dan,

    No, that's not normal, the gage sounds like it's doing its job, your charging system isn't working.

    First thing you might do is double check all the connections AND be sure the voltage regualtor is grounded. On my truck once in a while it won't charge and it's because it's gound is a little flaky.

    Jeff DeWitt

    Jeff DeWitt
    http://carolinastudes.net

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    • #3
      At idle with yhe lights on,your gage should show a small discharge.When you rev the engine and drive the car the gage should go over to the right of center indicating your genereator is charging up your batterry.When everythings back to normal.it should run just to the plus side of center.

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      • #4
        Thanks guys, the new regulator came with brass grometts and rubber
        grommetts to hold them in place. What would happen if I took the rubber off and bolted it directly to the car? The old reg was bolted to the car without any kinda of rubber insulators. thanks.
        Dan



        62 GT Hawk

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        • #5
          The rubber grommets are there for vibration protection.
          Just install a ground wire from a hold down fastener head to the body under the regulator. No extra holes needed. Be sure to clean off the paint grease under the location you use.

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          • #6
            Are you sure you battery is good? A weak battery can cause the regualtor to appear not to be charging properly.

            1960 Lark Convertible
            1962 GT Hawk
            Dan Peterson
            Montpelier, VT
            1960 Lark V-8 Convertible
            1960 Lark V-8 Convertible (parts car)

            Comment


            • #7
              Will try the ground wire. The battery is about 8 months old, I did run it dead coming home from work because the next morning it was stone cold dead. It is also bulging at the sides and I`ve never seen one do this. You guys are really helpful. Dan











              62GT Hawk

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              • #8
                The system has to to be polarized. Did you do that?

                Comment


                • #9
                  An eight month old battery should not be "bulging at the sides". Any chance it was stored with a low charge where it could have frozen?

                  1960 Lark Convertible
                  1962 GT Hawk
                  Dan Peterson
                  Montpelier, VT
                  1960 Lark V-8 Convertible
                  1960 Lark V-8 Convertible (parts car)

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Sorry,I see you did polarize the system. [xx(]

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      No, the battery couldn`t have froze. I live in sunny southern california and it doesn`t freeze here. I bought a new battery and still the same problem.[xx(] I`m at wits end don`t know what to do. My local parts man said that maybe the regulator is bad off the shelf. I know these things are possible. I just hope that`s all it is. He has
                      ordered me a new one should be here tomorrow or wednesday, will try that an hope it fixes problem. Will let all know what happens.

                      [8]Dan


                      62 GT Hawk

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                      • #12
                        There is a quick and dirty test to check the generator, check the manual or someone please correct me if I've got this backward but if you ground the field coil from the generator it will run flat out... for a REALLY quick and dirty test ground the field terminal and look in the back of the generator and see if there are sparks coming from the brushes. There should be if it's putting out.

                        If there are you have a bad regulator or a wiring problem, if there are not you have a generator problem.

                        There is another possibility, that the generator sat up for a while. If it did there could be a thin layer of corrosion on the commutator, keeping the brushes from making contact. You might try spraying some carburetor cleaner on the commutator, and be SURE to give it plenty of time to evaporate before starting the engine.

                        Jeff DeWitt
                        Jeff DeWitt
                        http://carolinastudes.net

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          If your battery is bulging out on the sides, it is bad. I don't care how old it is, if it is bulging out, it has gone bad. I think this is a symptom of your problem, not the cause, but the battery needs to be replaced. The only time I have seen this happen myself was when the battery was overcharged. I don't think this is your problem, but I think having it run down overnight may indicate that it is somehow grounded-out somewhere and that is causing a drain on the battery when it the car should be off. If you didn't have this problem at one time, then you replaced some components, and now you have this problem, I would suspect the new components. Electrical parts have about a 30% failure rate right out of the box (unless they are from Lucas, then the rate is closer to 99%), so I would look at that voltage regulator and that generator real carefully. If you are running original wiring, I would check that out real good too.

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                          • #14
                            WAcker, that sounds like good-solid advice! Is it really that high of a failure rate? WoW

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                            • #15
                              Thanks for all the info guys. Found out was faulty generator that I got, will have new one tomorrow then it`s back on the road for old Ruth. Just to let ya know Ruth was the name of the first owner and when I got the car the dash plaque was still in it. Thanks again.

                              Dan[8D]

                              62 GT Hawk

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